Greek Captain Criticized For Leaving Ship Early

By JOSH KURTZ

Published: August 6, 1991

Like Lord Jim, Joseph Conrad's wandering seaman whose honor is questioned for abandoning a sinking ship, the captain of the Oceanos is the focus of wide attention and criticism for his behavior during the rescue of people aboard the sinking ocean liner.

Although accounts differ as to when the captain, Yiannis Avranas, abandoned the Greek liner, several passengers have criticized him and his crew for jumping into lifeboats or climbing onto helicopters before everyone on board had been rescued.

In the tradition of the sea, captains are expected to "go down with the ship," or at least stay with their sinking ships until the very last minute. But in interviews, Captain Avranas was unapologetic for leaving the ship ahead of others, saying he was better able to direct rescue efforts from shore.

This statement has placed the 51-year-old Greek captain in a sea of controversy. 'Most Outrageous Attitude'

"That's the most outrageous attitude I've heard in my life," said Frank Braynard, curator of the Merchant Marine Museum in Kings Point, L.I., and an author of several books on shipping. "It's absolutely beyond comprehension that a man, even under those conditions, would say something like that."

Mr. Braynard said the captain should be deprived of his license and face criminal prosecution for "betraying the responsibilities of a ship's master that date from the earliest days of navigation." "I hope an example is made of him," he said.

But as a South African inquiry begins to explore the causes and legal liabilities of the sinking, it may well emerge that Captain Avranas's offense was not a legal one but a transgression against the general sense that many people have of proper behavior for a captain.

Richard Ashworth, a lawyer with Haight, Gardner, Poor and Havens, a New York firm specializing in maritime law, said the captain probably believed that he was doing the right thing.

"The tradition of the sea is that the captain goes down with his ship, but I don't know that that's the instruction," he said. "It would surprise me if he left because he felt he was in danger."

What disciplinary action, if any, is taken against Captain Avranas will depend on the countries that have issued licenses to him and his vessel, Mr. Ashworth said. The same is also likely to apply in potential lawsuits against the captain and the operators of the Oceanos, Epirotiki Lines of Greece.

There is no international law governing disciplinary actions against shipping companies and their crews.

Nikos Papaconstantinou, a spokesman for the Greek Embassy in Washington, said last night that Greece would investigate the accident and probably review the shipping company's license along with the captain's.

In a statement issued yesterday, the president of Epirotiki Lines Incorporated/North America, the American arm of the Greek shipping line, said it was too early to pass judgment on the behavior of the captain and his crew.

"However, even at this stage, we consider that the complete success of the rescue operation speaks for itself," the president, Arthur Lubin, said. "Anyone with some knowledge of passenger ships and extreme weather conditions will have no doubt that a rescue operation like this could not be carried out without the active involvement of the master and crew in cooperation with the rescue authorities."

Mr. Papaconstantinou could not say whether Greece requires captains of ships that fly the Greek flag to remain with their vessels when they are in distress.

"This is the common practice or tradition," he said. "I don't know if this is glorified by the movies, or whether this is the law." A Matter of Tradition

Even if Mr. Avranas is not punished for his actions, he may find himself ostracized in the tradition-bound world of international shipping, experts said.

In 1965, a cruise liner called the Yarmouth Castle caught fire in the Caribbean and began to sink. A nearby ocean liner, the Bermuda Star, sent lifeboats to help. When the sinking ship's captain was one of the first people rescued to climb aboard the Bermuda Star deck, the Bermuda Star's captain was so incensed that he forced his colleague to return to the burning wreck until all the passengers were accounted for.

Most operators of luxury liners tell ship captains "to insure the safety of everyone else before their own," said Priscilla Hoye, a spokeswoman for Cunard Line Ltd., operator of the Queen Elizabeth 2 and other vessels. But she acknowledged that in the heat of an emergency, ship commanders are allowed flexibility.

That argument was reflected by Captain Avranas in his interviews.

"When I order abandon ship, it doesn't matter what time I leave," he told ABC News. "Abandon is for everybody. If some people like to stay, they can stay."